Why can a wig falling off during a performance become comic?

A wig falling off during a performance is considered comic because it creates an incongruous situation that triggers laughter through the sudden release of tension.12

From a psychological perspective, humor often relies on the "bisociation" of a situation with two mutually incompatible contexts. When a performer—who is expected to maintain a composed, professional appearance—suddenly loses their wig, the audience’s "tense expectations" are abruptly debunked. This transformation of a serious or dramatic expectation into something trivial or absurd causes the viewer's accumulated emotional tension to become redundant, resulting in an explosive discharge of laughter.23

Furthermore, many theorists, including Thomas Hobbes, have noted that laughter can arise from a sense of superiority or "sudden glory" when comparing ourselves to the temporary infirmity or embarrassment of others. By exposing a performer's vulnerability, the incident allows the audience to distance themselves from the victim through a "momentary anesthesia of the heart," turning a potentially pathetic moment into a source of amusement. This reaction serves as a social release, where the audience works off surplus emotional energy through the physical act of laughing.32